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DECREE No. 14/2003/ND-CP OF FEBRUARY 19, 2003 DETAILING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A NUMBER OF ARTICLES OF THE LAND ROAD TRAFFIC LAW

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the December 25, 2001 Law on Organization of the Government;

Pursuant to the June 29, 2001 Land Road Traffic Law;

At the proposal of the Minister of Communication and Transport,

DECREES:

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.- Regulation scope

This Decree specifies a number of articles of the Land Road Traffic Law on some land road traffic rules; on signals of priority vehicles; on organization of cultural and sport activities, processions and/or rituals on land roads; on the responsibilities of the ministries, branches and the People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities (hereinafter referred collectively to as the provincial-level People's Committees) in ensuring land road traffic order and safety.

Article 2.- Handling of violations

Individuals and organizations that commit acts of violating this Decree shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be administratively sanctioned, disciplined or examined for penal liability according to the provisions of law.

Chapter II

SPECIFYING A NUMBER OF LAND ROAD TRAFFIC RULES

Article 3.- Distance between vehicles in convoys

When vehicles run in organized convoys, each convoy must not be longer than 250 meters in single line; if there are many convoys, the minimum distance between two convoys shall be 100 meters. The provisions of this Article shall not apply to police-led vehicle convoys.

Article 4.- Stopping, parking vehicles on urban thoroughfares

When stopping or parking vehicles on urban thoroughfares, the means operators must abide by the provisions of Article 19 of the Land-Road Traffic Law and the following specific regulations:

1. To stop or park vehicles close to the right curbs or pavements, the nearest vehicle wheels must not be more than 0.25 meters away from the curbs or pavements and not cause obstacles and danger to traffic.

2. Not to stop or park vehicles on sewage lids, telephone, high-voltage cable shelter lids and places for fire engines to be fed with water.

Article 5.- Loading cargoes on traffic means

1. Cargoes loaded on vehicles must be tidily and firmly tied up, not to let them drop on roads, not to let them be dragged on road surfaces and not to obstruct the handling of vehicles. The dimensions for cargo loading are specified as follows:

a) Cargo vehicles must not be loaded with cargoes beyond the car trunks to the front and to the back more than 10% of the vehicles’ length; beyond the vehicles’ width and/or beyond the permitted height prescribed for each type of vehicle;

b) Passenger cars must not be loaded with cargoes beyond the cars’ outside dimensions;

c) Motorbikes, mopeds and vehicles must not be loaded with commodities and luggage 0.30 meter beyond the width of the luggage carriers to each side, beyond the height of 2 meters from the ground and 0.50 meter beyond the luggage carriers to the back.

d) The motorized three-wheelers (including lambrettas) and rudimentary vehicles must not be loaded with commodities in excess of 1/3 of the length of vehicles’ bodies to the front and the back and/or beyond the width of the vehicles’ bodies. Particularly pack-bikes must not carry commodities beyond 0.40 meters to each side of the wheels and beyond 1 meter to the front and to the back of the vehicles. It is forbidden to carry commodities and luggage on the roofs of motorized three-wheelers (including lambrettas).

2. When commodities are loaded beyond the vehicles’ length to the front and/or the rear, there must be red signal pennants in the daytime and red signal lamps in the nighttime.

Article 6.- Cargo vehicles are allowed to carry people in a number of cases

1. Cargo vehicles are allowed to carry people in a number of the following cases:

a) Carrying people for the performance of the tasks of natural disaster prevention and combat or urgent tasks; carrying officers and men of the armed forces for the performance of tasks; carrying accident victims for emergency treatment;

b) Carrying road maintenance workers; carrying practicing drivers on driving-practice vehicles; carrying people in procession;

c) Removing people from danger areas or in other urgent cases under the provisions of law.

2. Vehicles carrying people in cases prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article must be mounted with fixed trunks and ensure safety when joining in traffic.

Article 7.- Pedestrians

In addition to the provisions in Article 30 of the Land Road Traffic Law, the pedestrians must also abide by the following regulations:

1. They must not cling to running traffic means; when carrying bulky commodities, they must ensure safety and not obstruct people and means joining in traffic.

2. When walking in groups, there must be guides.

Article 8.- Wearing crash helmets when sitting on motorbikes, mopeds

Persons who operate or sit on two-wheeled motorbikes, three-wheeled motorbikes or mopeds must wear crash helmets when riding on land roads prescribed for compulsory crash helmet wearing.

Chapter III

SIGNALS OF PRIORITY VEHICLES

Article 9.- Signals of fire engines

The fire engines are furnished with rotary lamps on their roofs emitting red or blue light and with horns to blow priority signals.

Article 10.- Signals of military vehicles, police vehicles on urgent missions

1. Military vehicles are mounted with rotary lamps on roofs emitting red light, with military pennants at the heads of the vehicles to the left of the drivers and with horns to blow the priority signals.

2. Police vehicles are mounted with rotary lamps on roofs emitting blue or red light, with police pennants at the heads of the vehicles to the left of the drivers and with horns to blow priority signals.

Article 11.- Signals of ambulances

The ambulances bear crosses in red on their sides, are furnished with rotary lamps on roofs emitting red light and with horns to blow priority signals.

Article 12.- Signals of dyke protection vehicles, vehicles on missions to overcome consequences of natural disasters or emergency state

1. Vehicles performing the task of dyke protection carry the signboard "XE HO DE" (dyke protection vehicle) stuck to the vehicles' front windscreens and fly the dyke protection pennants.

2. Vehicles performing the tasks of overcoming consequences of natural disasters or emergency state and traffic accident rescue vehicles:

a) Vehicles performing the tasks of overcoming consequences of natural disasters or emergency state shall bear separate signboards;

b) Traffic accident rescue vehicles are furnished with rotary lamps on roofs emitting yellow light and with horns to blow priority signals.

Article 13.- Signals of road-clearance police vehicles

1. Cars are mounted with rotary lamps on roofs emitting blue-red lights, with police pennants at the heads of cars to the left of the drivers and with horns to blow priority signals.

2. Motorbikes are furnished with blue or red light-emitting lamps on front or rear forks, with police pennants at the heads of the vehicles and with horns to blow priority signals.

Article 14.- Using priority vehicles' signals

1. The priority vehicles may use priority signals only when they are on urgent missions.

2. Land road traffic means other than the priority vehicles are strictly forbidden to use priority vehicles’ horns, pennants, lamps and/or signboards, prescribed in Articles 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 of this Decree.

Article 15.- Organization of implementation

The ministries which manage priority vehicles shall coordinate with the Ministry of Science and Technology in specifying standards of horns and lamps of the priority vehicles; inspect the use of signals of priority vehicles under their respective management according to the provisions of this Decree.

Chapter IV

ORGANIZATION OF CULTURAL AND SPORT ACTIVITIES, PROCESSIONS, RITUALS ON LAND ROADS

Article 16.- Agreeing on plans to ensure traffic

Agencies and organizations wishing to use land roads for cultural and/or sport activities, processions and/or rituals must get the written agreement of the competent road-managing agencies on plans to ensure traffic before applying for permission to organize cultural and/or sport activities, processions, rituals as provided for by law.

Article 17.- Dividing traffic flows

1. In case of necessity to restrict traffic or shield off roads for organization of cultural and/or sport activities, processions and/or rituals, the road-managing agencies shall have to issue announcements to divide traffic flows and the organizing units must publish such announcements on the mass media.

2. Where the cultural and/or sport activities, processions and/or rituals take place on roads simultaneously with other traffic activities, the organization thereof must ensure order and safety for people and means joining in traffic.

3. The People's Committees of the localities where the cultural and/or sport activities, processions and/or rituals are held shall have to direct the local functional agencies in well organizing the division of traffic flows, ensuring traffic in areas where cultural and/or sport activities, processions and/or rituals take place.

Article 18.- Other regulations

1. Agencies and organizations which organize cultural and/or sport activities, demonstrations and/or rituals on land roads must strictly comply with the regulations on the scope and time of using land roads, abide by the regulations on ensuring traffic order and safety, protecting land road works and keeping the environment sanitation.

2. After completing the cultural and/or sport activities, demonstrations and/or rituals on land roads, the organizing units must remove all means, equipment and return the road surfaces to the original state.

3. In cases where due to the requirements of cultural and/or sport activities, processions and/or rituals, land road works need to be repaired or strengthened outside the already approved maintenance plans or where the cultural and/or sport activities, demonstrations and/or rituals cause damage to roads which need to be repaired and restored, the expenses for these works shall be covered with the funding for organization of cultural and/or sport activities, processions and/or rituals under the provisions of law.

Chapter V

RESPONSIBILITIES OF MINISTRIES, BRANCHES AND PROVINCIAL-LEVEL PEOPLE’S COMMITTEES IN ENSURING LAND ROAD TRAFFIC ORDER AND SAFETY

Article 19.- Responsibilities of the Ministry of Communication and Transport

1. To promulgate technical standards of road works and regulations on management of the exploitation and use of the works and ensure their safety and life; organize and guide the placement of adequate road signs; manage the work quality, periodically inspect and promptly notify the technical safety conditions of land road works; organize the appraisal of traffic safety for land road works from the time of formulating the projects thereon, designing and construction and in the process of exploitation thereof; apply special technical measures to ensure traffic safety at dangerous places where accidents or traffic congestion are likely to happen; direct the work of ensuring traffic in rainy and flood seasons.

2. To prescribe the quality and technical safety standards of motorized land road traffic means; organize the inspection and granting of certificates of technical safety inspection and environment protection for motorized vehicles.

3. To organize the registration for inspection of technical safety for special-use vehicular machinery joining in land road traffic.

4. To prescribe conditions, standards and granting of licenses for land road motorized vehicle registration establishments.

5. To specify the training programs, conditions, standards and granting of licenses for drivers- training establishments.

6. To prescribe standards of driver- testing centers; organize driving tests and grant or change driving licenses.

7. To prescribe the organization and management of passenger transportation, cargo transportation by land; to prescribe the standards, organization and operation of passenger-car stations.

8. To inspect, examine and handle violations according to its competence; organize, direct and inspect the activities of land-road traffic inspectorate throughout the country.

9. To coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security in monitoring and analyzing the causes of serious and particularly serious traffic accidents; to work out effective measures to limit traffic accidents and congestion.

10. To coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Defense in protecting land-road works of particular socio-economic, security and defense importance.

11. To coordinate with the concerned ministries and branches in propagating, disseminating and guiding the legislation on land-road traffic and ensuring land road traffic order and safety.

12. To assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security in specifying the change of driving licenses when they are marked for violations of the land road traffic legislation.

Article 20.- Responsibilities of the Ministry of Public Security

1. To stipulate and organize the registration, number-plate granting, withdrawal of registration papers and number plates of land road motorized vehicles, except the army's vehicles used for defense purposes and special-use vehicular machinery; provide for and organize the registration and inspection of automobiles, drivers' training and tests, granting driving licenses and management of means and drivers of the public security sectors.

To designate traffic police being testers to join the councils of tests for granting driving licenses of the communication and transport service.

2. To guide the land-road traffic control command; organize and direct the work of patrol, control and handling of violations against people and means participating in traffic.

3. To assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Communications and Transport in specifying the marking of violations of the land road traffic legislation on the driving licenses of operators of land road motorized traffic means.

4. To investigate and handle traffic accidents; to assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Communications and Transport in making statistics on, monitoring, analyzing, and concluding on the causes of, traffic accidents; propose, and organize the implementation of, measures to prevent traffic accidents.

5. To guide, inspect and reorganize activities and strengthen the police force performing the task of ensuring land road traffic order and safety. To regularly educate the traffic police force to raise the sense of responsibility, quality and professional qualifications; to timely commend and reward and severely handle officers and soldiers who commit negative acts while performing their tasks.

6. To participate in appraising traffic safety for land-road works before they are put into exploitation and use in accordance with the provisions of law.

7. To coordinate with the concerned ministries and branches in propagating, disseminating and guiding the land road traffic legislation and ensuring land-road traffic order and safety.

8. To organize the protection of land-road works of particular socio-economic, security and/or defense importance.

Article 21.- Responsibilities of the Ministry of Defense

1. To organize the management and inspection of military vehicles and operators of land-road traffic motorized vehicles of the army, which are used for defense purposes.

2. To propagate, disseminate and educate land- road traffic legislation among the army, ensuring that army personnel and means operators strictly observe the law provisions on land-road traffic and submit to the inspection and control by forces ensuring land road traffic order and safety.

3. To organize, guide and inspect the performance of tasks by the military police force in the work of ensuring land-road traffic order and safety.

4. To participate in protecting particular important land-road works.

Article 22.- Responsibilities of the Ministry of Finance

1. To ensure funding for the work of ensuring traffic order and safety at the proposals of the Ministry of Communications and Transport, the Ministry of Public Security and the provincial-level People's Committees.

2. To assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Communications and Transport and the concerned ministries and branches in guiding and organizing the implementation of collection of fines for administrative violations regarding land-road traffic.

3. To guide the management and use of fines for administrative violations in land-road traffic, ensuring that the total amount collected from sanctions against administrative violations in land-road traffic is used for the work of ensuring traffic safety according to the approved plans.

4. To organize the inspection and control of the management and use of fine amounts strictly according to regulations.

Article 23.- Responsibilities of the Ministry of Culture and Information

1. To work out plans for propagation and dissemination of land-road traffic legislation.

2. To direct culture and information agencies, central and local press agencies to regularly propagate and disseminate legislation on land-road traffic, educate the sense of observance of the legislation on traffic order and safety to people of all strata.

3. To guide the licensing of advertisements without affecting land-road traffic safety and urban traffic safety.

Article 24.- Responsibilities of mass media agencies

The central and local mass media agencies must have special columns or programs for propagation and dissemination of the legislation on traffic order and safety.

Article 25.- Responsibilities of the Ministry of Education and Training

1. To organize the compilation of textbooks on the land-road traffic legislation for teaching in schools and other training establishments, suitable to the study disciplines and levels.

2. To work out measures to educate pupils and students in strictly observing the law provisions on traffic order and safety; to direct schools to coordinate with the concerned agencies in working out measures for putting an end to the situation that pupils under the law-prescribed ages go to school by motorbikes, mopeds or operate motorbikes without driving licenses.

Article 26.- Responsibilities of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs

1. To coordinate with the Ministry of Communications and Transport in inspecting and checking drivers- training establishments according to regulations.

2. To guide vocational-training establishments in fostering knowledge about the land-road traffic legislation and guide the granting of certificates for operators of special-use vehicular machinery participating in traffic.

Article 27.- Responsibilities of the Ministry of Construction

1. To direct the planning on urban centers and concentrated population quarters, which must ensure the safe and efficient exploitation of land road routes.

2. To approve according to its competence or to guide the elaboration and approval of projects on planning and construction of urban centers and population quarters, ensuring necessary land areas for construction of urban traffic infrastructure.

3. To guide the coordination in construction and repair of underground works, not to cause traffic congestion and urban traffic unsafety.

4. To guide the granting of permits for construction of working offices, schools, hospitals, cultural and trade service centers, and population quarters, ensuring land areas for vehicle-parking suitable to the size and nature of each work.

Article 28.- Responsibilities of the Health Ministry

1. To assume prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Communications and Transport in prescribing health criteria and the organization of periodical health checks for drivers.

2. To direct the organization of medical emergency networks along roads prone to traffic accidents.

3. To organize the first-aid training for traffic police, traffic inspectors and first-aid people.

4. To build up systems of information on traffic accident emergency.

Article 29.- Responsibilities of the provincial-level People's Committees

1. To direct and organize the application of every necessary measure to establish and maintain traffic order and safety in their respective localities, considering this a central task, and regularly inspecting the implementation by various levels and branches under their respective management.

2. To organize the application of measures to prevent, check and handle acts of violating land-road works, infringing upon land road safety corridors; to task and inspect the subordinate People's Committees in the protection of land-road works and land road safety corridors in the localities (including national highways running through localities).

3. To specify the permission of temporary use of parts of street pavements, road beds, without affecting traffic order and safety; organize the clearance of illegally occupied road beds and street pavements; not to lease street pavements and/or road beds in any form for business activities.

4. To direct the subordinate People's Committees in observing the planning on arrangement of marketplaces and business locations for people without violating the regulations on traffic order and safety.

5. To work out and implement plans on rennovation and expansion of roads under local management in compatibility with the approved plannings in order to overcome traffic congestion; to take measures to organize traffic such as restricting or banning the circulation of a number of means; arranging traffic flows and routes, prescribing the scope and time for operation of some types of vehicles; the office hours of agencies, organizations, enterprises.

To propose and organize the implementation of policies and measures to restrict the number of personal traffic means, applicable to cities and towns of the localities.

6. To draw up and direct the implementation of plannings on construction of car terminals, parking yards; to manage the operation of car terminals and parking yards.

7. To manage land-road transport according to the decentralization and guidance of the Ministry of Communications and Transport.

8. To propose priority policies for mass transit development; to organize the management of urban mass transit.

9. To organize public-utility State enterprises for bus transportation activities; to stipulate that agencies and enterprises with large number of employees, which are located in areas where busses do not pass through, must arrange cars to carry their officials and employees.

Chapter VI

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 30.- Implementation effect

This Decree takes effect 15 days after its publication on the Official Gazette.

To annul Decree No.36/2001/ND-CP of July 10, 2001 of the Government on ensuring land road traffic order and safety and urban traffic order and safety.

Article 31.- Implementation responsibility

The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government and the presidents of the provincial/municipal People's Committees shall have to implement this Decree.

On behalf of the Government

Prime Minister
PHAN VAN KHAI